10 years of Twilight: Keeping The Twilight Saga fandom alive

It hasn’t always been easy being a Canadian Twilight fan. If there has ever been a cohesive and organized fan community here in Toronto, I’ve never found it. By and large, my connections with other Twilight fans have always been made online – although I think that’s probably true no matter where you live.

After all, once Twilight became popular,  it became the new fandom and story that was “fun to hate,” and Twilight fans – tired of being made fun of or chastised by friends, boyfriends and colleagues – made friends with other Twilight fans in secret, emboldened by the (comparative) safety of the online world. And because I spent so much time online with my Twilight friends from around the world – still do, in fact! – I got to see all of the things they got that Canadian fans didn’t.

I’m talking fan camps. Annual conventions. Concerts. World premieres. Talk show appearances. Signing events. DVD release events. The works.

In Toronto we had one Twilight fan convention in 2010, as well as small, regional release parties and premieres. Of course, the scale of these events was perfectly acceptable for the size of our market – Canada has only a tenth of the US population, after all – but as I watched my friends line up at conventions and camp out at premieres, I was a little bit like Ariel the Little Mermaid.

I wanted more, damn it. More experiences, more friends, more Twilight. And that’s why I’m so excited for the 10 year anniversary: it’s an opportunity to create fresh, new Twilight experiences, both online and off.

Lionsgate/Art by Justin Erickson

So what’s happening, exactly?

Well, if you haven’t heard yet, Twilight is coming back to theatres for its 10th anniversary. For the collectors among us – and trust me, everyone is going to want this – the saga’s DVD and blu-ray offerings have been updated with gorgeous new artwork that coincides with the overarching feel and theme of each film.

And for passionate event goers, like me, the Fathom Spotlight series will be bringing the first Twilight film back to theatres on October 21 and 23. Of course, those screenings are only happening in the US, but there have been online listings with Cineplex, Canada’s largest theatre chain, suggesting we’ll be getting our own VIP screenings, too – just on a smaller scale.

But really, it’s not about who gets what. What’s important here is that, six years after the last Twilight film hit theatres, we’re still talking about the saga.

I can’t wait to wear a classic Alice Cullen look at a Cineplex Twilight screening in Toronto!

I don’t say this lightly: As a fandom, this 10 year anniversary is a gift. We’re lucky to love something that’s endured this long among so many people. And we’re lucky, too, that Twilight keeps resonating and finding a place with younger and younger audiences. That interest is what keeps the fandom alive, and for those of us who have stuck with Twilight for the last 10 years or more, this is our reward.

So will the Canadian Twilight fandom finally get what the US gets? Probably not. But I’ve been really, really lucky to get to travel for Twilight, so I’ve learned to make peace with that. Because I’ve finally realized it’s not really about me, and what I get or don’t get. It’s about all of us. At the end of the day, no matter where we live or the types of experiences we have, we all want more Twilight.

So keep talking about Twilight. Keep cosplaying. Keep tweeting. Keep creating fan art. Keep visiting Forks.

We’re keeping this fandom alive – and that love, that excitement, keeps earning us more Twilight.

xoxo,
Alice